Improvement in harmoniums



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES GILMOUR, OF GLASGOW', NORTH BRITAIN.

AlMPROVEll/lElNlT lN HARMONIUMS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 48,883, dated July 18, 1865.

duction of a more refined tone than hitherto obtained,` which improvement is produced by causing the sound from the reeds to travel through a greater distance th iiformerly before being emitted, so as to bringaboutas near as possible the el'ect of a sound coming from the pipe of an organ g thirdly, the obtaining of a greater and more effective varietyof sound; fourthly, the production oi' liner-toned instruments at a much lower rate ot' costV than hitherto.

Figure 1 on Sheet l ot' the accompanying drawings represents a transverse sectional view -ot' one ot' my improved harmoninnis, taken through the treble portion ofthe instrument. Fig. 2is corresponding sectional view ofa larger and slightly modified construction ot' instrument. Figs. 3, 4, and 5 are details, and will hereinafter be more fully referred to.

In Fig. ltliecase ofthe instrument (marked A) is made, as is usual in ordinary musical instruments ot' a similar class', of either rosewood, mahogany, or other ornamental timber, and within this case is contained the frame- 'Workcarrying the body or main portions ot' the instrument.

The part marked B is the key-iframe, containing the keys C and C', iii the under part of which the pegs or pins l) are titted,and these,

when pressure is communicated to the keys, act upon the stickers D', which, in turn, pressing upon the pallet-levers E, cause the pallets situated over the reeds to be lifted, when the sound from the reeds immediately follows.

The upper part of the instrument, carrying the row of keys G and C', together with the stop-battons F, is attached to the lower or under part-A, consisting of the swell-box and 'reedchest, by thc hinge-joints G, this frame being secured at the outer end by clamp-hooks and eyes, as usual.

Those portions of the instrument just described and referred to are in no respect novel or original, and consequently form no part ot' my present invention, my reason for inserting them beingto further the com plete elucidation ot'my actual invention, to which I shall now more particularly refer.

Situated immediately below the key-frame is the swell-box H, made by preference of the saiiieleiigth and breadth as the reed-chest I,

over or upon which it is situated. The upper portion ofthe swell-box H is perforated with a row of holes, through which the note-stickers D pass iii their communication with the palletlevers E, and extending throughout the whole length ofthe swell-box H is the slightly-iiielincd division J, shown in transverse section. Upon more particularly' referring to the ligure it will be Seen that this division does not eX- teud the entire way across thechestin a transverse directiombut at the front part of the .Swell-boXHan opening is left running throughou t its entire internal length. This loiigitudi nal opening, (mai-lied KQ) together with that portion or" the swell-box beneath the division J, is divided at the center ot' its length by a piece ot' wood running entirely across from back to front at the part where it may be determined to separate the bass from the treble, this division ot' the swell-box Hthuseectually separating the bass from the treble portions of the instrument. That portion ot' the swell-box H situated above the division J is also divided by a central bar situated immediately above the lower one, K, thus cutting oi communication between the treble and bass portions, as distinctly shown in the transverse section, Fig. l on Sheet l.

In the upper part or cover ot' the swell-box H two openings, K', are formed, one over the treble and the other over the bass end of the instrument, and to the exterior of the swellbox, on the under side of the top, the levers L, carrying the pallets L', which close over the openings, arefastened by a movable Joint, L2. These levers pass through holes formed in the back part ofthe box H, and extend to some distance beyond it, their ends being mounted with hooks, attached to which are the strings or cords M, connecting them to the piano- 2. esser the material form-ing the joint between the swell-box and reed-chestsuiiieiently close together to make it perfectly air-tight.

The stop-hatten F is connected at its inner end by apio-jointto the bent lever P. Thelower part of this lever passes through a slot-hole formed in the pallet-lever L, that portion passing into the slot being formed with a shoulder above, solliat when the stop-betten F is pulled outbytheplayer,thebentleverPbeingbrought into a nearly vertical position, the distance between its upperend and the-pallet-lever becomes greater, owing to the increased virtual length of thebent lever. Lis attached, osllereinbe'fore described, to the piano-swell lever or connecting-bar N bythe cord M. rEllis connectingbar N has formed on its under side the wedgeshaped projection N', and is fixedv by a hinge tothe windchest, as shown in Fig. i, the board forming the upper part of the reservoir being extended to some distance in a backward direction, and upon this projecting part the wedge-shaped blocks of' wood Q'slide, they being fixed to one end of a rod,` Q', passing through the wind-chest to the handle R, which, when pulled, brings forward the wedge-shaped pieces Q, and, owing to these pieces being moved inward or toward the narrowest partof the wedge-formed. projection N', the contact between the two parts Q and Nj is broken.

To the lever N there is lined au elastic cord or spiralv spring, S, and this is yconnected to the bellows or reservoir of the4 instrument. The use of a spring or elastic cord is that when the piano-swell is shut lor the lever N or connecting-bar is prevented from acting the elastio cord may give way and allow the reservoir to till. Nevertheless,owing to its elasticity, the

- spring or cord S is always suciently distended whether the bellows are 'iniiated'or not, and it is Vevident that when the pieces Q are moved inward and out/ot' ,.copigewi m1 the short levers N the latter are capable of being moved downward when force is applied to them. 'lhisinovingforce exists in the pressnre ci Wind contained in the'beliows or reser- Voir; and. it is further obvious that it' the levor N is depressed, owing to its being attached by Aa. comparatively inelastic cord, M, to the pallet-levers L, the latter must also be moved downward to a corresponding extent, which movement consequently causes the holes in the upper part of the swell-box H to be opened by the' pallets: L' being drawn to a distance from their inner edges. In tbisarrangeinent thereenists theoapabilityofvaryingtheamount of opening ot' the pallets L' by the pressure of wind in and 'the degree of inflation to which n can be produced.

the bellows or reservoir is subjected, so that when the musical tones are emitted through the openings hereinbefore referred to, the power of the tone may either suddenly or most grad-` ually be increased or depressed to the utmost nicety andv degree ot refinement.

Having now 'described in detail the various arrangements and systems of mechanism of that modification of mylinvention shown in Fig. l, Sheet l, ot' the annexed drawings, I shall proceed to point out in-what my improvements essentially consist--thatis to say: `The chief feature ot' this modilication of my said invention consists in applying over the reedchest I the swell-box H, divided and constructved in the manner hereinbetore described, the result of' which is the production of a tone which assimilates very closely to the melodions strains of the organ-in fact, making the har-l moninm'a much more eilicient substitute for the latter than what has hitherto been accomplished, owing to the special arrangements of the swell-box H. The sound emittedfrom the reeds when any of the reed-pallets are lifted passes first up through the front longitudinal openingof that division ofthe instrument from which it proceeds, Arriving on the top of the inclined sound-board, it escapes through the pallets L ot that division ot' the instrument. Supposing the sound toproceed from the treble portion ot' the instrument and that the paliet L over that portion is open, the sound will beheerd modified in tone, owing to its being emitted ai'ter having passed through the swellbox; but on the other hand, and it' at the time but a low pressure ct' wind be employed, the sottostanti almost inaudible musical sounds These are capable of being verygradually increased by increasing the pressure in the reservoir by the action of the feet upon the blowing-levers. When the latterisiilled 'to the highest extent possible, by suddenly closing the distant pallet and opening the nearest one the power of the musial tones is swelled to the utmost extent. It is at once obvious that the player can produce at' `will either the highest power ot which the instrument is capable, both in the trebleand hassportions simultaneously, or it is equally' easyto produce-a powerful treble with avery softand'apparently distant bass, and, inversely,a powerful bass with a soft and apparently distant treble, f

A second modification ofmy said-invention is that shown in Fig. 2, Sheet 1. As in the former moditicatiomthe-ease A -is formed ot' some ornamental orfancy wood..Il B le the key-frame,

containing the keys, (marked-U and C,) in the under partA of which are screwed or otherwise fixed the pegs D. Motion., being imparted-,to

the keys by the pressure of the lingers., isconnmnnica'ted by these pegs D to the stickersgQDi-, andthence to the reed pallet-leversE.. rAllie upper part of this instrument, oarryingthe keyboard and stop-battons F,is attached 'tov .the ,body of the instrument by means of the hinges G, the frame itself being secured at the front ond by means of clamp-hooks. (Not shown.) Placed immediately belou7 the key-frame and upper parts of the instrument is the swell-box H, of the same size as and fitting close upon the upper part ot the reed-chest l.

'ln the construction ot the sweltbox H mainl ly consists the chiet' features of improvement in this niodiiication ot' my said invention; and as most ofthe details in this arrangement are similar to the one bereinbef'ore described and referred to, and in some respects similar to instruments of this class as generally constructed, I shall now proceed more particularly to specify the peculiar features of the swell-box H, leaving the details of the knee-swell and piano-swell to be hereinafter referred to.

On referring to 2, Sheetl,it will be seen that in the upper part of the swellbox two longitudinal openings, H and H2, are formed. Over these are situated the movable pallets I and J, connected by the pallet-lever L to the knee and piano swells mechanism by ineens et' the cords M and N. Throughout the entire length of this swell-bon H there runs the hori- Zontal sound-board K, having two openings, 0 and 0', formed, one being in each ot' its alternate ends and atalternate sides, alternating likewise with the openings H and H? in the cover or top portion. this swell-box H and its sound-board K there is tixedaverticaldivisional strip, P. This runs in a diagonal direction throughout the entire length ofthe interior portion ofthe swell-box, causing the passages Q, and It to be narrower at one end and wider at the other. 'lhere is also a crossdivision in this swell-box, dividing the bass from the treble. When the sound is emitted from the'rceds in the' bass division of the instrument it can be rendered as soft and pleasing as possible, and in etect is made to appear at n great distance. The reason of this is owing to its having irst to travel thtough the opening O. Its passage is continued along the upper part ot' the swell-box in that part ot' it separated by the partition P before arriving at the further cud ot' the passage Q, which part being of much larger internal dimensions than the end from which it proceeded, theintensity ot' thc sound is decreased in an inverse proportion to the distance through which ithas traveled and the dili'erence between the space at. lirst and tinally occupied.

.ln this modilication the same remarks apply to the treble division of the instrument, and. therefore need not hc repeated. The method ot acting upon the palletsin the upper part of the swell-box by the pressure of wind in the bellows is similar in this to that described in the former modilication; but in this rnodica tion they are also acted upon bymeans ofthe linee-swell, that portion ot which connected to the piano-swell knob S is similar in this to that described in reference to the former arrangement, so that when the two wedge-shaped pieces ll and U are pulled at a distance from Between the cover of one another the pallets may be opened by means of thetension imparted to the elastic string connecting the lever V to the bellows or reservoir, or by means ot the kneeswell itself, which consists ot' the cranks W, movable on joints df/,to which the pallet-levers L areconnected by means of the cord M. From the lower arm ot' the crank W there extends a wire or rod parallel to and on the same horizontal plane as the rod Y, and which consequently cannot be seen in lFig. 2. rhis rod is again connected tothe hinged knee-board Z, which projects ont when in use from the front or" the case ot' the instrumentinsuch manner that, the knee being applied to or pressed against it, a movement is communicated to the lcrank W, and thence to the pallet-levers, which, in turn, open the pallets lo an extent corresponding to the amount of motion first imparted to the knee-board Z, the quantity ot motion ofthe pallets being regulated by the length of each arm ot' the crank W and length of the levers L. By these two arrangements ot' mechanism for regulating thc swelling or decreasing of the power ot' the instrument it is obvious that either-the increase or diminution of tone can be regulated at will either by the knee-swell or by the pressure ot wind in the bellows or reservoir acting on the piano-swell.

A third modification of my said invention is shown in transverse section at Fig. l on Sheet 2. VThis arrangement is intended to be more particularly applicable to instruments ot' a larger variety than those hereiubefore described and referred to. The case of the instrument in this as in the former niodilications is made ol'or'narnental timber; but, in contradistinction to them, it is made ot' a dilterent form, having a large portion projecting upward from the body ofthe instrument. This portieri is for the purpose of containing a pair of ducts l'ormod- `ulating the powers ofthe instrument, and will hereinafter be more fully described.

B is the key-trame, containing the rows of key i) and C". with two setsot" pegs, i and l. rhose markedl, toward the front, act upon the front set of pallet-levers J bythe inierventionoi the stickers J, while the set marked l act upon the backward pallet-levers H, also by the intervention of the stickers K. Above the reed-chest there is placed the swell-box L, ot the sanne length and breadth as the former, and fitting closely over it.

Extending entirely throughout the central horizontalplane ot' the swell-box Lis the soundboard li/Lin which are formed fouropenings, N, through which the sound as is emitted from the reeds passes. in the cover or lid ol" the swell-box L there are formed t'our openings, 0 and O', twoot'which are only seen in the accompanying section; but more openings maybe used, so as to obtain the full power, when required. rhe front set ot openings (marked 0) are closed on the interior by the pallets P, which are acted upon by the stop-battens Q,

The keys C and C' are titled forward these, coming into contactwitht'he mov-- able' lever T, cause it to be elevated, and this in turn imparts an upward movement to the sliding rod U, carried in the guides U. This rod, acting against the lids or pallets, causes them to be also lil ted. When it is desired to produce musical tones of a medium power, the pallets?2 are opened, and-.the sound emitted from the two sets of reeds passes through the openings covered by the pallets P2 that emitted from the reeds G passing in the direction indicated lby the arrows marked l, while the sound emitted from the back set of reeds travels in the direction of the arrows marked 2. 1f-it.is desired to produce a very soi't tone, thisis effected bymeans otclosingthe pallets P, when the sound, instead of passing through them,is caused to travel rst through theopenings in-the swell-board, passing thence to the large ducts R, and tinallyesoapes .atlthe top through the lid B,which can be openedto any desired-extent by means of the st0pbattens,0r by means of-thc cord V, extending to the knee or piano swell and windu-@servent as described in reference to thev swell-box levers of the-last mOdiCJOD- "When thesound passes as in th@ last-mentioned manner its. course isindi- Gated by the sets of arrows marked 3. It is Obvious that thelast arrangement of swell-box and ducts is susceptible of numerous modidcations, and, in addition to placing pallets cn the top of the chests, they may likewise be placed in the sides and lower portions, thusenabling a sound to be produced not of quite so soft a' degree aswhen issuing from the top.

Itis obvious that'any of the pallets in thehereinreterredto-rnodicaticns ct" my inven'- tion maybe made movable in many other ways 4besides thosewhich lha've descri bed, an d showu in thejaccompanying sheet ot' drawings.` For instance, they may be constructed to move on a central .or end pivot, or to'slide around oi the openings.

There are also l'many other. methods 'under which-my said invention maybe put into prac.

tice, and very simple method ot modifying the tone of harmoninms is thatshown in plan' in Fig..3 andV in transverse section in Fig. 4, Sheet 1. These twoligures represent a very simple kind of swell-box, which eonsistslof a.I rectangular frame, A, covered by .a lid, B. This box tits over an ordinary reed-chest, and 'may be amxed thereto in any convenient manner,

The stickers for actuatingthe reed pallet-levers pass down through the holes C, which are continued along the swell-box inthe directionot' the dotted line. In the cover of this swell-box two openings are formed, covered by the movable pallet D. They are connected with the bellows/or reservoir by cords, as in the former moditications, or may be actuated by stop-battens and a. lever arrangement. In this simple modiiication the cross-division between' bass and treble may or may not be used. By means ot' these pallets a great variety of vtone is capable of being produced. By opening the-bass pallet the sound emitted from boththe bass and treble divisions of the instrument escapesA at the bass-opening, thus producinga powerfnl-bass with a' soft treble, andon closing the bass-pallet and opening the treble one a soft bass with a powerful treble is produced, while when both pallets are opened the full power of the instrument can be at once produced.

Another modification of swettbox is that shownin half plan and horizontal section, Fig. 5, Sheet l. This box is intended to be placed upon the divided reed-chest, Fig. 6, in which the bass and treble portions are separated by the longitudinal division A. (Shown in dotted lines.) The position of the two sets of reeds in this v.ligure is delineated by the dotted lines B and B', situated at alternate sides ofthe front and back portions of thevchest. Pallets C are Shown at the eXtremit-iesof thereeds,with their levers D movable in the lever IBSOI Tack E- The swellh0X, Fi g. 5, to tit over this reed-ouest has four pallets, A", by means of which, coupled with the divisions contained in it,`the sound is modiied to any extent-from the softest and apparently most distantsound to the full power of the instrument. This arrangement, being a modification of that hereinbefore described and more particularly referred to,need not be more fully specified, as it is evident bythe general .arrangement otI this swell-box and reed-chest shown in Figs 4 and 5, Sheet 1.

Another modication of swell-box is that shown in Figs. 2 and 3, Sli/eet" 2, of which Fig.

' 2 is a general plan and Fig. 3 a transverse section taken through the treble half of Fig.' A2.

In this arrangement the box is divided horizontally-by the sound-board A, Fig. 3., and vertically in the lower half-by the divisional strip B, (showrl'in dotted. lines, Fig. 2,)thus separating the bass from the treble, while that por- ,i -tion between the sound-board and top of the box is divided by the diagonally-situated pertion B, Figs. 2 and 3. In the soundfboard two openings,`D and E, are formed,one in eachhalf at alternate sides, while pallets F and F-'are placed over openings in the lid or cover, alter- .natia g with the openings D and E. This last-1 mentioned arrangementcorresponds veryclosely with that described in reference to Fig. 2,

'tl1'eet,l, the diicrenee, which is slight, chiey consisting in the constructive detail.

. It is cln ions that most of the foregoing ai rangements of swell-boxes can be applied to In testimony whereotlhave signedmynaine harmoniums of ordinary construction already to this specification in the presence of two subin existence, when nearly the saine improved scribing;` witnesses.

efects are produced as in an instrument originally made with my invention applied thereto. JAMES GILMOUR.

I claim- The arrangement and construction of mnsi- Witnesses: cal instruments substantiaily as hereinbefore W. JOHN ."rNCENTor:Y7

described, or any mere modification thereof.' JOHN BROWN. 

